The average American lives on more than $90 per day.
Approximately one billion people (three times the population of the US) live on less than $1 per day.
Forty percent of the world’s population, 2.6 billion people live on less than $2 per day.
For me, it is easy to read these statistics and either be numb to the reality because the issue is so large it is beyond my comprehension or to be so overwhelmed that I become paralyzed and feel helpless.
It has been helpful for me to notice how Jesus saw and responded to large gatherings of people. Instead of seeing the crowds as simply a mass of humanity, he saw individual people and he saw families. It would seem that Jesus could have done much more by doing mass healings, but he preferred to touch individuals. In the midst of the large crowds of people in need, Jesus took the time to care for people personally.
A few weeks ago I attended the annual Association of Evangelical Relief and Development Organizations (AERDO) gathering in Washington DC. I was astounded when I heard the scale of some of the development programs going on and the cost involved. Compared to the big relief and development organizations, CWR is a rather small player. In a world with so many hungry, hurting, and oppressed people, God has allowed CWR to partner with many small but effective organizations and churches which are focusing on individuals, families, and communities in need. Through the generous donations of ECC churches and individuals we are able to touch the lives of real people and real families in real places like Colombia, Mexico, Kenya, Sudan, Thailand, Laos, Indonesia, India, and many other countries around the world. So, although CWR may seem small when compared to these other larger organizations, we are able to minister like Jesus by focusing on individuals, families and communities.
How do these statistics strike you? What is your initial reaction? In what ways are you able to look at the crowd of people and needs and minister?
